Totally Killer (2023) Dir: Nahnatchka Khan
Instagram post:
So, I fancied an easy watch for an evening, and since I've seen this Nahnatchka Khan directed film popping up here and there, I figured I'd give it a go. It gave the impression of trashy American teen thriller, and that's what it was, but in a kind of good way.
It was like if Riverdale was a film. I half expected the cast to turn up - one of them does, or at least the actor does. The visual effects were undeniably awful - it felt like I was watching a mid-budget TV series.
The film was a bit cheesy and wacky, but it was also very fun. The story wasn't anything special, neither were the performances, but the film definitely got some of the comedy right. The soundtrack was groovy, if maybe not as 80s-fueled as I would've hoped.
Kiernan Shipka was a good, but not amazing protagonist. She was reasonably entertaining and funny, but the film's writing held her back, in my view. That said, she was still the best performer in the film, and by quite some way.
Olivia Holt had some really strong moments, but her writing was very inconsistent and her character felt awfully one-note. The duo of Charlie Gillespie and Troy Leigh-Anne both deserved more attention and better writing, especially Leigh-Anne - but I did at least enjoy some of what they got to provide.
Jonathon Potts was so irritable as a character, not because he was supposed to be, he was just that bad. Kelcey Mawema, on the other hand, could have been decent, but was completely underused, and so ended up being a forgettable, near pointless character.
The other names worth mentioning for their involvements were Julie Bowen, Lochlyn Munro, Kimberly Huie, Liana Liberato, Randall Park and Stephi Chin-Salvo.
Overall, this was a very silly, but easy-to-watch horror comedy with plenty of fun from start to end, even if it did feel a bit too teen thriller for my taste. I think this prime original was one that did a lot of things okay, but could've done them so much better. Regardless, this is one I think a lot of people will enjoy.
Comments